Having Complementary Item (e.g., Novelty) Patents (Class 379/114.18)
  • Patent number: 8295805
    Abstract: A method and system of providing an electronic receipt, such as a SMS text message, to a consumer responsive to a purchase of long distance calling minutes, real-time replenishment of the customer's account, and seamless, pin-less use of the purchased long-distance from the user's chosen phone(s).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignee: Krush Communications, LLC
    Inventor: Richard Estrada
  • Patent number: 8090343
    Abstract: A method and system for streamlining the call processing for a prepaid call in a mobile telecommunications network is provided. A trigger detection point (TDP) for processing an originating call placed by a prepaid wireless subscriber, which may be called “O-Answer,” is defined in a mobile user's subscription information stored in the prepaid subscriber's home location register (HLR). An additional TDP for an incoming call to a prepaid subscriber as a terminating party, which may be called “T-Answer,” also is defined in the prepaid subscriber's subscription information stored in the HLR. If the prepaid mobile subscriber's account balance is above a threshold amount, the call can be processed using the O-Answer and T-Answer TDPs without the need to contact the prepaid platform for authorization, thus reducing the amount of signaling required to process a prepaid call.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2012
    Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC
    Inventor: Mustafa Anwar Kazmi
  • Patent number: 8064579
    Abstract: Prepaid services include a multi-user prepaid services account as well as a prepaid balance associated with the account. A plurality of user records associated with the account each includes a quota. A service monitoring component may be configured to repeatedly draw down the prepaid balance by providing one or more allocations of the prepaid balance during a service period to a user associated with a respective user record.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2011
    Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Inc.
    Inventors: Gregory L. Mumford, Jon E. Abel, David A. Fitzgerald, Radhika Gunasekar, Anna Marie Appleby, John M. Leslein
  • Patent number: 7680483
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are a mobile contents access, transmission and reception method using a hyperlink message, the method allowing predetermined contents to be displayed or to be activated when a hyperlink of the hyperlink message is selected, the hyperlink message includes hyperlink information designating a connection point at which the contents will be executed on the terminal, and free communication identification information indicating that a communication fee normally charged to the terminal is not charged, the terminal adds an indication of free communication to the hyperlink message and displays them on a display means, the contents are activated in the terminal through the connection between the terminal and the connection point, and when the connection is terminated, the mobile communication provider server calculates the communication fee to be charged for the connection through, and stores it as billing information for the contents provider rather than billing information for the terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Inventor: Nag-Ku Kim
  • Patent number: 7453996
    Abstract: Provided is a billing method for telecommunication service based on fixed fee according to user's usage time. The method includes the steps of: estimating reference time according to user's usage time of the previous term; estimating guarantee time; reading user's usage time of this term; and billing telecommunication service fare according to the reference time and the guarantee time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2008
    Assignee: KT Corporation
    Inventor: Il-Hyung Jung
  • Patent number: 7305074
    Abstract: A method of controlling the operation of a communication system is described, where the system comprises a first entity 2 for sending a first data object 21 to a terminal device 4 and a second entity 3 for sending a second data object to the terminal device at the request 41 of the terminal device 4. The communication system also comprises a data transfer entity 11 and a charging entity 5. The data transfer entity 11 records charging relevant parameters related to the transfer of the first data object. It is proposed that the second entity 3 is controlled to output a predetermined triggering message to the data transfer entity 11 and/or charging entity 5, where the operation of processing the charging relevant parameters in a charging procedure is postponed until the predetermined message is received.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 4, 2007
    Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)
    Inventors: Frank Hartung, Frank Hundscheidt
  • Patent number: 7255268
    Abstract: A system and method for electronic purchase of prepaid telephone services is provided. An initiating terminal receives input of a customer's request to purchase a specified amount of prepaid telephone services and receives input of the customer's designation of a financial account from which to electronically debit the price of such purchase. A central terminal receives these inputs from the initiating terminal, obtains authorization for the request, and transmits data to the initiating terminal for the initiating terminal to, in turn, print on a receipt and provide to the customer. This receipt is then used instead of a telephone card to obtain telephone services up to the specified amount. Such receipt may also detail instructions and an authorization number, such as a personal identification number or PIN, to initiate the pre-paid telephone service.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2007
    Assignee: Electronic Data Systems Corporation
    Inventor: Dale H. Dentlinger
  • Patent number: 7156300
    Abstract: A system and method for electronic purchase of prepaid telephone services is provided. An initiating terminal receives input of a customer's request to purchase a specified amount of prepaid telephone services and receives input of the customer's designation of a financial account from which to electronically debit the price of such purchase. A central terminal receives these inputs from the initiating terminal, obtains authorization for the request, and transmits data to the initiating terminal for the initiating terminal to, in turn, print on a receipt and provide to the customer. This receipt is then used instead of a telephone card to obtain telephone services up to the specified amount. Such receipt may also detail instructions and an authorization number, such as a personal identification number or PIN, to initiate the pre-paid telephone service.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 1995
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2007
    Assignee: Electronic Data Systems Corporation
    Inventor: Dale H. Dentlinger
  • Patent number: 6823065
    Abstract: A business card communication system and auto-dial business cards. The auto-dial business cards include business information indicia and computer readable call connection information. The computer readable call connection information is configured to permit a card holder to automatically place a call to a call destination designated by the card provider. The business card communication system comprises a processing system coupled to an interface system. The processing system is configured to process a call request from a communication device to translate an access number provided in the call request and generate call handling information that routes the call request to the business premise. The interface system is configured to receive the call request from the communication device and transmit the call handling information for the processing system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2000
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2004
    Assignee: Sprint Communications Company L.P.
    Inventor: Fred S. Cook
  • Publication number: 20040001578
    Abstract: Method for enabling a telecommunications service provider, in particular in the field of prepaid mobile services, to reward certain service customers on the basis of characteristics, chosen by the service provider, without having to interfere with billing systems. To this end, the chosen characteristics are stored and kept up to date in a database, in the form of a user profile and the data relating to rewards in a rewards database; the rewarding takes place at the moment the customer wishes to recharge his prepaid card.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 11, 2003
    Publication date: January 1, 2004
    Applicant: KONINKLIJKE KPN N.V.
    Inventor: Daniel Francois Van Tonder